Have you ever read an article about an NBA player who has just had "unsuccessful" surgery?

Larry Bird recently said, effectively, that the Pacers will continue to suck until 2011-2012, when cap space finally opens up (you can read about my article on it here).

To me, that says no moves before the Feb. 18 trade deadline (at the very least).

However, there are still rumblings of a possible Troy Murphy to Cleveland deal, though it will obviously NOT be Murphy for Ilgauskas' expiring contract, JJ Hickson AND multiple draft picks.  Come on.  Seriously.  Even the Phoenix Suns, who are willing to give up Amare Stoudemire, aren't expecting that much in return.

Murphy may be about the same level defensively as Stoudemire (ie can't defend a chair), and he's a better shooter, but let's not kid ourselves.

Actually, there's more competition than just the Suns.  Cleveland is also after Antawn Jamison (Wizards) and Corey Maggette (Warriors).  I'd probably say Murphy would be the third best option for the Cavs.  He's a top defensive rebounder and he can stretch the defense with his shooting, but both Stoudemire and Jamison would be better options due to their scoring ability and versatility.

There's another rumor that maybe Shaq can't co-exist with Stoudemire (because they couldn't in Phoenix, duh!).  It has been suggested that if the Cavs get Stoudemire for Ilgauskas and Hickson, then they might look to move Shaq, whose $20 million contract is expiring at the end of this year.  Do you know what's one of the possible options?  Shaq for Murphy and Mike Dunleavy Jr.

Can you imagine that?  Shaq on the Pacers?  Even just till the end of the season?  I can't, but it would sure be funny.

I know no Pacers were involved in this year's All-Star Weekend in Dallas, but it just wouldn't seem right not to blog about it.

From all accounts, and from what I've seen, the whole thing was a bit 'meh'.  Probably because no Pacers involved.

Yes, record crowds thanks to the new Cowboy Stadium, but injuries to major stars (eg Kobe, AI) and the absence of Shaq, who is always entertaining, made it a more subdued affair.

Rookie Challenge

For once, the Rookies won, 140-128, in the usual all-flair and no defense exhibition.  But remember, Derrick Rose didn't play.  I think if he did it would have made a huge difference.  Still, having said that, I thought the sophmores would have had enough to take the Rookies, but I guess I was wrong!

Sacramento guard Tyreke Evans won MVP honors with 26 points, but I don't quite understand why the award didn't go to DeJuan Blair, the 2nd round pick for the Spurs, who had 22 points and 23 rebounds for the first 20-20 in Rookie Challenge history.

Russell Westbrook (Thunder) top scored with 40 for the losing Sophomores.

They should have had Hibbert and Rush for the Sophomores.  That would have turned the result around (NOT!).

Shooting Stars

No one cares about this.  But for the record, Team Texas (with Becky Hammon and Kenny Smith!) won.

H-O-R-S-E

This should really be a lot more fun than it currently is.  Kevin Durant (beating Rajon Rondo and Omri Casspi) repeated his win from last year by nailing threes.  Big deal.  We want to see some damn trick shots!  Something crazy!  Come on!

Personally, I think if all they are doing is shooting jumpers, Danny Granger could give himself a shot in this.

Skills Challenge

Steve Nash proved that he's still the PG with the most skills in the NBA by taking out the Skills Challenge, completing his final round in 29.9 seconds, outgunning Deron Williams, who got stuck with the last pass.

AJ Price to compete in this next year?

3-Point Contest

Paul Pierce certainly surprised me with his win - 20 in the final round, including all 5 money balls.  I thought he didn't have the right stroke to win the contest, but he somehow managed to beat Chauncey Billups (14) and Stephen Curry (17) in the final.

Doesn't it seem strange to you that Reggie Miller has never won the 3-point contest but Paul Pierce has?  What as the world come to?

Dunk Comp

I thought some of the dunks were pretty good, but because we're all so used to seeing stuff that is out of this world, nothing seems to surprise us.  I thought DeMar DeRozan's off the side of the backboard, throwdown on the other side dunk was the best of the night, but somehow, Nate Robinson won it for the third time.

Seriously.  I like the little champ as much as the next guy, but is Nate Robinson the best dunker in the league?  The same guy that missed about 100 dunks once and STILL won it?

The Dunk Comp needs to be revamped somehow, and it needs to happen soon.  Getting bigger name stars to participate would be a start.

All-Star Game

MVP Dwayne Wade.  Lebron James.  East over West, 141-139.

Lots of turnovers.  Some nice moves.  Same old stuff.  I enjoyed how Tim Duncan didn't give a crap though.  That was fun to watch.

Verdict

I give this year's All-Star Weekend in Dallas a B-.  Not horrible but nothing special.  If only they threw some Pacers in it, then that could have made a difference.

The Feb 18 NBA Trade Deadline is almost upon us, but there have been almost no whispers of a deal involving the Indiana Pacers.

Curious, considering the Pacers need help.  Badly.

I prepared this article on Bleacher Report on the Pacers' trade deadline options.  In short, there are no options.  We had a Murphy trade for Ilgauskas (for that juicy expiring contract) that went down because the Pacers also wanted Hickson and draft picks.  We had a Granger for Jefferson trade that got shot down quickly by the Pacers.  There was a Jeff Foster for Ty Lawson rumor that got put to sleep with Jeff's season ending back surgery.  And no one wants TJ Ford.

Larry Bird recently said to ESPN (article here) that the Pacers' rebuilding is on track.  Hang on, since when were we rebuilding?  I thought we were just fixing bits and pieces up and getting playoff experience.  Did I remember incorrectly? 

Importantly, Bird said that the action will move into high gear AFTER next season (ie end of 2011 season), when the books will free up and the Pacers will have serious money to play with.  In other words, don't expect the Pacers to be any better until then.

For about 3.5 quarters, the Indiana Pacers looked on track to beat the Chicago Bulls at Conseco Fieldhouse.

But any Pacers fan would tell you that they were still sweating.  And they would be right, because the Pacers choked down the stretch and ended up losing 109-101 (outscored 28-15 in the fourth).

Sad, really.  But not totally unexpected.

Granger had 27 points (on 9-23 shooting), grabbed 10 boards and dished out 3 assists.  Troy Murphy had 18 and 16 and Earl Watson had 14 and 6 assists, but had 5 turnovers, including 2 big ones down the stretch the complete the Bulls' comeback.

Interestingly, Coach O'Brien went with TJ Ford over AJ Price tonight.  Does this mean the promising 2nd round pick is heading back to the end of the bench in favor of Ford?  In 14 minutes of play, Ford had 9 points (on 4-6 shooting) and added a rebound and an assist.

I say no matter what, play Price!  Ford and Watson can battle it out to see who can come off the bench.  The Pacers need to think about the future, not the past.